Last year’s season for the Camel men’s ice hockey program did not turn out to be what they had hoped for. The Camels finished the 2010-2011 campaign with a record of 7-14-3 (6-12-1) in conference. Despite their record, the Camels still showed flashes of talent, beating the nationally-ranked and eventual NESCAC champion Bowdoin 2-1 last January. Not making the NESCAC playoffs was a big disappointment, though, and this year’s squad is ready to prove themselves.
One of the Camels’ best assets this season will be the team’s depth. This year’s squad features seven of last year’s top ten scorers. At the top of that list is Sean Curran, one of this year’s senior co-captains, who led the team last season with a total of 17 goals and 10 assists, for a total of 27 points. Besides Curran, the Camels are returning a number of offensive threats. Seniors J.J. McGregor and Julien Boutet both finished in the top five for scoring on the team, while senior Mike O’Donnell was also in the top ten. Outside of the talented senior class, this year’s sophomores have plenty of talent as well. Steve Servideo and Mike Sinsigalli led the freshmen in scoring last year, with nine and eight points, respectively.
Sean Murray '13 scored a goal and two assists in Saturdays win over Trinity (photo from web)
“We lost a couple of talented players last year,” said Head Coach Jim Ward, “and we are returning looking to fill in the gap. That’s where our senior leadership has come in. They are all great guys and great role models.”
Indeed, the senior class’ talent is not just offensive. On the blue line, the Camels are lead by senior co-captain Lucas Chavira Schramm, as well as senior Chris Fogg. Coach Ward specifically mentioned the depth of his D-core as an improvement from last year. Dawson Luke ’13 hopes to repeat his success on the blue line last year, as he led all defensemen by eight points. The Camel roster this year features seven freshmen on defense as well.
“In addition to our freshmen, we are also excited to get Kevin Reich back,” said Coach Ward. Reich, a sophomore, played in only two games last year, missing the rest of the season due to an early injury. He is coming off of surgery this summer; “Kevin is almost like a new addition to our line up. He’s a very good player and we are excited to get him back on the ice,” added Ward.
The Camel’s defensive depth doesn’t end at the blue line, however. In net, the Camels are backstopped by senior Andrew Margolin. Last year, Margolin played in 20 games, posting a 0.895 save percentage. Joining him are sophomore goaltenders Mike Petchonka and Marcus Calvanico. Calvanico only played in one game last year, but did not let up a goal during his time in net. Petchonka played in five games with a respectable 0.908 save percentage. “Having three returning goalies gives us some good experience in net” said Petchonka. “Margolin is a great goaltender, and it demonstrates the depth we have as a team this year from the net up to the forwards.” Goaltending will again be key for the Camels this year, and the outlook is good.
The big question mark for the Camels however is scoring. Last year, it was an issue, but the team is optimistic for the upcoming season. “We were disappointed with the way things turned out last season,” said senior co-captain and scoring leader Sean Curran. “This year we have a good group of freshman, and our hard work in the off-season has definitely paid off,” he added. “We are way ahead of where we were last year.” The bottom line is that the Camels knew at the end of last season that they had to improve. After an intensive summer and pre-season work outprogram, it looks like they are in good shape to do just that.
Despite a tough 6-1 loss on Friday to Wesleyan, the Camels bounced back Saturday, traveling to Trinity College and beating them in their own barn 5-4. Dawson Luke scored a goal and junior Sean Murray added three points of his own, scoring a goal and tallying two assists. Andrew Margolin collected the win in net, racking up an impressive 35 saves. The Camel’s will open their season at home this Saturday against UMASS-Dartmouth.•
